Check Out The Amazing Place In China That Inspired The "Floating Mountains" In Avatar

What most people don't know is that much of Pandora's landscape was modeled after a real place - Zhangjiajie in the Hunan province of China.

The gorgeous quartz-sandstone pillars of Zhangjiajie (specifically, the 3,544 foot high "Southern Sky Column") became the basis for the floating "Hallelujah Mountains" of Pandora.

The Zhangjiajie government then went so far as to rename the "Southern Sky Column" to "Avatar Hallelujah Mountain." However, this proved to be a very unpopular decision and the government went on to deny ever renaming the pillar. "We only added a way to call the mountain. The previous name is not abolished," says a Zhangjiajie tourism official via Reuters.

At any rate, the real-life scenery in Zhangjiajie is breath-taking and we have the pictures to prove it.

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Remember those amazing "Hallelujah Mountains" on Pandora?

IMDB

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Well here's where James Cameron got the idea... Zhangjiajie...

Image: Business Insider

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Looks the same, minus the helicopters

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Certain Pillars Are Given Names...

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... Such As "Yu Bi Feng" (Imperial Brush Peak)

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An Upward View

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Some crazy widlife, too (though not as crazy as Pandora's)

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They're Everywhere

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Millions Of Years Of Water Erosion...

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... And Landslides...

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... Shaped The Pillars Of Zhangjiajie

Image: Business Insider

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Like This One That Looks Like An Old Man...

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... Which Can Be Seen Off Of Baofeng Lake

Image: Business Insider

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One Of Many Waterfalls In The Area

Image: Business Insider

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